POLITICS Kerry: I'll bring Ohio jobs

A Bush-Cheney spokesman says Kerry's record is at odds with job production.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- U.S. Sen. John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, says he has a plan to bring 417,000 new jobs to Ohio, most of them in the manufacturing sector.
In a conference call Wednesday with various press outlets, Kerry discussed his jobs and economic growth plan in preparation for a campaign bus tour through Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Michigan early next week, including a stop Tuesday in the Mahoning Valley.
"No group of Americans have felt the pain from the Bush economic plan more than those four states," he said.
In response to a question asked by The Vindicator, Kerry said Ohio was hit the hardest of the four states when it came to job losses under the President Bush administration.
"We can encourage significant job growth quickly," he said. "We want Americans working, but I'd also like American companies to be competitive globally. I don't want to lose jobs. I'm running precisely for the opposite reason."
Kerry said Ohio has lost about 230,000 jobs since Bush took office in 2001, most of them in the manufacturing sector.
Comments from other side
In response, Kevin Madden a Bush-Cheney campaign spokesman, said Kerry's 19-year record in the U.S. Senate of more taxes, more regulation and environmental policies are at odds with job production.
"John Kerry's illogical economic policies of higher taxes and more government regulation would send the Ohio economy into a tailspin," he said. "You simply cannot grow Ohio's local and regional economies by imposing burdensome taxes and an extreme environmental regulation agenda on Ohio's taxpayers and small businesses."
Madden said Ohio residents understand that Kerry's agenda "is an economic hazard they would much rather avoid."
Speaking from Houston, Kerry said he would further outline his job creation program during his appearances next week in the four states, including his stop in Youngstown.
During the teleconference, Kerry said American automakers should be encouraged to develop hybrid-powered cars to create jobs and reduce the country's reliance on gasoline. That effort would help create manufacturing jobs.
Other aspects of plan
He also said his plan involves:
UEliminating the incentive for corporations to send jobs overseas. He said his international tax reform plan would grow jobs at home by cutting corporate tax rates by 5 percent.
UGiving small businesses the help they need to hire new workers by providing tax credits for businesses that create American jobs in manufacturing, and by cutting health care costs to employers by lowering health care premiums.
UProviding a middle-class tax cut to make college affordable, including a tax credit on the first $4,000 of tuition for each year of college to make it more affordable.
"This administration has no other plan than to cut taxes," he said of Bush. "I'm not going to cost jobs, and Republicans are just trying to scare people. They say I'm going to raise taxes when I'm going to give 98 percent of Americans a tax cut."
The Bush administration has failed the American people when it comes to job creation, Kerry said, and now they are using scare tactics and attacks in an attempt to discredit him.
"What a silly argument Republicans are making that John Kerry will make the country lose jobs. What presidential candidate would support plans to lose jobs?"
skolnick@vindy.com